


Destiny Inc Investigations - A Bite in the Dark AU story

by talconhiro



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: A Bite In The Dark - AU, AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Scooby Doo Fusion, And Guard Duck, And they share a pet mouse, Donald is Scrappy, Gen, Horror, Inspired by Fanart, Jeredu Inspired this, Like a Girl and her two boyfriends, Multi, Other, Sometimes Family is Complicated., her boyfriends are also dating each other, pet dog., real monsters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-01
Updated: 2020-05-21
Packaged: 2021-01-16 05:50:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21266099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/talconhiro/pseuds/talconhiro
Summary: Sora met a demon in the night as a small child. He barely remembers this, but it's made him always seek out the those who hide in the darkness. He grew up with Riku and Kairi always just a few steps behind him. On his 16th Birthday, after several secret road trips off the Islands, Riku approached him in the middle of the night asking Sora a single question. "Can we leave"Sora replied, "Not without Kairi"Riku replied, "Of course, she's already in the van:.So they left in the middle of the night. Tired of this provincial life. The Sea called for them. The Mainland has so many more haunted corners for them to find.





	1. The Magic of Family Reunion

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Jeredu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jeredu/gifts).

> This art is inspired by the Lovely Art by [JereduLevenin](https://twitter.com/JereduLevenin). Specifically [this one](https://twitter.com/JereduLevenin/status/1181560454902099968?s=20). Which in turn is part of a series of conversations They, I, and various other people get up to on discord every few days. I have a SoRiKai Bias, so I'm telling a story in what's ultimately his world not focusing on the main ship of this AU (Vanisa). That will show up, as well as other ships, but all from Sora, Riku, and Kairi's perspective. I hope you enjoy this journey with over the coming month.
> 
> A sex scene happens in Chapter 3 now, so the rating has been changed to Mature.

The rumble of Highwind roared loudly as the red, white, and yellow van barreled down the highway. The windows all slightly tinted, reflected the high summer sun on this blistering July day. Destiny INC was painted across both sides of the shell white van in an off Yellow. The front of the van was embezzled with a bright red paint. Hidden behind the dark glass was the crew of Destiny INC. Sitting in the driver’s seat was Riku. The Air Conditioning unit had gone out again, so both the driver side’s window and Passenger's window was rolled down as the wind blew through his long hair. Riku’s pet mouse Mickey Michael poked its head out of his breast pocket. 

Kairi was nestled in the passenger's Seat, half asleep, half singing along to each song that came on the radio. Poking his head, and half his body in the space between the door and Kairi is their Anatolian Shepherd Dog, Goofy. The ever cuddly doggo had his head out the window, enjoying the breeze as they hurtled along the road at 100 Kilometers an hour. Kairi was half hugging the dog for her own comfort in her half asleep state, and half ensuring the excitable mutt didn’t leap out the window at the first sign of something more interesting than their status quo.   
  
“DONALD DUCK!” Sora yelled loudly in frustration as a loud bang came from the back of the van. The Brunette boy slammed into a wall as he chased the duck in the confined space. The small American Pekin waddled across the back of the van almost gleefully, Sora’s crown shaped necklace trailing from the bird’s bill.   
  
“Can you keep it quiet back there, Kai’s trying to sleep.”   
  
“Mnnn be nice to Donald, Sora.” Kairi mumbled from her almost comatose state.   
  
“He stole my necklace again!”

“You need to take better care of that. - I still can’t believe you act like “duck” is his last name.”  
  
“It feels more serious when I use two words.”   
  
Riku Sighed.   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  
Some time later, they found themselves at a gas station on the side of the road. The sun had found its way to the horizon and slowly making its descent to usher in the night.The three humans of Destiny INC. gathered around the gas pump.   
  
“How much money do we have left?” Kairi asked as she finagles with the gas pump.   
  
Sora patted through all his various pockets, revealing about 60$ in various bills, mostly 1s and 2s. Riku pulled out another 50$ in 20 dollar bills and 10s. Kairi nodded. “Well have to do some work in the next town. That’s our destination anyways, isn’t it?” 

Riku nodded in reply. His eyes half covered by his bangs as he idly fed some seeds to Michael mouse. For a cross country adventure, they sure had found a lot of pets along the way. Riku’s eyes darted to Sora with the thought and a smile crept across his face. Well, it wasn’t like he could blame him.  
  
Refreshed now, Kairi flashed a smile to her two boys. “I’ll gas it up to full, but that’ll be most of the money. I’ll see if I can flirt my way into some free hotdogs though.”   
  
“Oh and some nuts for Donald!” Sora interjected.   
  
With a chuckle she added, “yes, and some nuts for Donald. Alright. Time for me to get to work!”   
  
And so Kairi filled up the gas tank, watching the price rise and rise, the 110$ grasped in her hands firmly. Idly she drummed her index finger against the side of the gas nozzle as she watched the dollar value of the gas up increase, keeping beat with each dollar increase.   
  
Meanwhile Sora and Riku had perched on the hood of the van, laid back against the windshield, taking in the final rays of sun as it continued its sleepy descent. Dreamily Riku lets out a sigh turning to face his boyfriend. This was good. In the span of a few weeks, the three of them had confessed their mutual love to one another, and they did it. They got off the Islands. Drove across the bridge and never looked back. Sora could be incredibly infuriating at times, but in a way, that’s what made him safe. Made him lovable.   
  
Sora gazed back at Riku, a dopey smile plastered on his face as they interlocked fingers. Finally Sora broke the silence.   
  
"I still say we should have called it Excalibur." 

"And I still say a reference to British Mythology is a terrible name for a Ghost hunting van. Highwind is perfect. It's the draft of destiny that got us off the Islands and into this life."

"Yeah, but then it would have been like, we were stabbing in the dark!"

Riku Sighed again. That time it was followed by a chuckle.   
  
“Whatever am I going to do with the two of you?” Kairi mock sighed hopping on the hood and nestling between her two boyfriends.   
  
“We should probably get back in the van and hit the road before it gets fully dark.” Sora said almost defeatedly.   
  
“I don’t know what you’re complaining about Sora, you’re not the one who’s going to be driving into Radiant Garden in the middle of the night.” Riku shot back as the two cuddled Kairi who was now tightly squeezed in the nook between her two boys.   
  
“So, what you score, what was the damage?” Sora asked, gently running a circle in Kairi’s Hand.   
  
“100 bucks for the gas. 5 dollars for nuts. And 7 free hot dogs that were, and I quote, due to be thrown out anyway hehehe.” Kairi says in a low content sigh. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Around three in the morning, the Destiny Inc. Van turned off a highway into a silent street. Riku slowly steered the van to the sound of 4 sleeping souls in the back. Sora’s loudish snores, accompanied by the slight breathing of Kairi. Donald’s almost rumbling roar, dared anyone to attack his humans to the beat of Goofy’s tail thumping lazily against one of the walls.   
  
Riku had become a master of finding abandoned parking lots. This time it was a parkade in an almost dead part of town. He drove past row upon row of fore sale signs. Lawns yellowed with little care, houses with paint almost all chipped off, with an unexplainable parkade at the end of a cul-de-sac. 

The street lights were all out despite the late hour, making the Destiny Inc. Van’s headlights like a knife in the dark. Riku audibly groaned, which had Michael crawl up his arm to gently and reassuringly pat his cheek.   
  
“You’re almost a more caring father figure than my actual dad” he whispered to his pet mouse, gently petting it with a finger before quickly re-adverting his attention to the road. Silently he rolled into a spot parked in the back corner. The eyes of bats reflected in his headlights. It gave Riku a bit of a chill, but he stopped the car anyways.   
  
He could barely make out the shapes of the walls or anything outside the van with his headlights off. He squinted for a moment before trying both doors. He looked to his right, sitting in the passenger's seat was Donald. The duck was asleep, but Riku was overcome with this feeling that somehow, the Pekin was still watching his every move despite this.   
  
His eyes were so heavy. Slowly he dropped himself into the back, landing on the mattress in the conspicuous Riku shaped hole Sora and Kairi had left between them. His head rested between the two of them. Both of them, in a half asleep state quickly interlocked one hand with one of Riku’s each, and stretched their other arm across Riku’s chest, interlocking fingers with one another as well.   
  
One of the bats opened its eyes, looking long and hard at the van. It couldn’t see the contents through the tinted windows. Well really, it shouldn’t have been able to see anything. Detect perhaps, but no, this bat did see the van. And as the shadows lurked and night ticked on and on, the bat did watch.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
The next morning was more accurately described as Afternoon. The culprit for this was the grumble of not any of their animals stomachs, but Sora’s.   
  
“Ugh, Sora, I was just having the nicest dream. It involved a giant Riku sized Parfait that I’m not going to see when I wake up. And that is a crime that must be rectified.” Kairi groaned, not actually removing her face from its spot burrowed into Sora’s chest as the trio slowly wafted into consciousness.   
  
Riku laughed in response to Kairi’s protests, which were accompanied with her lightly banging on Sora’s sides half heartedly with her firsts.   
  
“Com on Kai, it woke me up too!” Sora groaned.   
  
“Yeah, but you could fall back asleep in an instant, and I’m not letting that happen!”   
  
“Aren't you guys forgetting about me? So, I guess I'm the only one who will be actually having breakfast today” Riku interjected. He didn’t want to be up, but he knew right now he had to be responsible for these two. While he was the only driver, so he should be getting as much rest as he needed, he couldn’t hear the two of them bickering because they were hungry and not want to scour the world for his Sun and Star.

The three slowly peeled themselves out from the tangle of each other over the next hour. Quickly scarfing down a hot dog each, and feeding Goofy the remaining one as they did their best to freshen themselves up. 

“Well princess, I’m really sorry that this isn’t the Parfait of your dreams, but it might be a marginally healthier breakfast”  
  
“Not by much” Kairi said with a sigh. Taking one final bite of her hot dog and downing it with the final dredges of water from a nearby bottle.   
  
“So, what’s our game-plan” Sora asked, tossing nuts out from a can that Donald was angrily catching in the air and munching on. 

“We head into town and try and find some places looking for some part time labourers. We also find an address for the abandoned McDuck Manor.” Riku replied as he began strapping in their table and chairs so they wouldn’t slide around in the back.   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  
The bat was now a crow. It was the same bat, though it now needed to take flight and leave, so it was now a crow. As Highwind had roared to life, the crow silently took flight, flying overtop of the van and seemingly leading it out of the parkade. 

A shining bright afternoon met them as they drove over cracked pavement and past the dilapidated suburb. It seemed that some parts of Radiant Gardan needed a gardener. The road was bumpy, and the trio were still quite hungry. The three took the drive in an almost dead silence as they made it to the downtown core of the city. 

“Ugh, I hate roundabouts” Riku groaned as they entered one which they got stuck in due to a difficult lane change. Rolling to a stop in a parking spot on the side of the road a few minutes later Sora poked his head over Riku’s shoulder and pointed at a small squalor shop squeezed between towering skyscrapers. 

“We HAVE to check this place out” he called out. 

“You’re lucky I already parked” Riku spat as he placed his palm on Sora’s face and pushed him backwards. Sora tumbled back and hit into a wall.   
  
“Oww, I waited Riku.” Retorted Sora, and then Donald was honking at Riku angrily, feathers ruffled. 

“Oh Donald calm down!” Kairi scolded. “Sora’s fine, right Sora?”  
  
“Right as rain” Sora said laughing as he got out of the car. The duck’s honking ceased, but everyone could tell that he was glaring daggers at Riku.   
  
“I Think I need to keep one eye upon tonight” Riku said half joking, half serious.   
  


“You better keep an eye on Mickey, Donald might try to take revenge on him” Kairi said in passing to Riku as she unhooked her seat belt and slid out of the van.   
  
Locking up Highwind Riku sighed, “His. Name. Is. Michael.” He corrected.   
  
“You’ll never get us to stop” Sora said offering a Sunflower seed to Riku’s pocket. Michael mouse quickly snatched it from Sora’s hands and a slight chewing sound could be heard.   
  
The shop’s name was Mogwatch. A brick house shaped building with a bay window squished as tightly as it could be between two gray concrete towers. The roof was sloped and of an old gray wooden tiling. The smell of incense wafted from the door and windows. The door was a wide oak construction with a crescent top and a cast iron handle for pulling open. It looked quite heavy.   
  
Speaking through the van window Sora locked eyes with Donald and said, “now you keep Goofy safe”. A glint in Donald’s eye made Sora feel like he was getting saluted in reply. He smirked at his little sailor, er duck. 

The magic of the place was almost overwhelming. It felt like the three of them were the only ones who noticed the place. Almost hidden in plain sight. Atop the shop sat a single Raven sitting atop a few crow feathers. 

“Well my great sunshine, please do lead the way, fearless leader” Riku teased.  
  
Sora rolled his eyes and reached for the handle and pulled it. It relented to his force after a moment and Sora took a step back and down the 3 stair tall stone staircase leading up from the sidewalk. Kairi had her hand on the small of Sora’s back, and Riku on her shoulder. It was their system whenever dealing with entering a possibly dangerous place to not get separated. They refused to let the world pull them apart, no matter what.

The inside of the shop was dusty and dimly lit. Row upon rows of ceramic jars with labels written in Latin were laid out on a series of tables in the center. The walls were lined with glass jars of eyeballs, crickets and other bugs and small critters. A rickety staircase was opposite the entrance leading up to a small landing that seemed to be loaded with large cast iron cauldrons. The cash register was at a counter to the left of the front door and layered on the wall behind it were various beakers of unknown liquid, some burning over a fire, some burning without a fire, some liquid fire. Trays of small square glass containers with various salts and other mixed herbs and spices. A hooded man in a black coat stood behind the register. His face was not visible but a strange red pom poked out from the top of the hood, he silently watched the three ghost chasers.

Sora had to contain all his excitement to _ not _ touch everything he saw. _Was this their ticket to finding _ _ him _ . Sora didn’t want to assume, so it went unsaid. The three quietly held their formation as they slowly explored the shop until Sora bumped into the only other patron. A tall gangly man with red hair, not as spiky as Sora’s but close.   
  
“Watch where you’re going Rox- wait. What?” the main said confusion washing over his face. “Sorry, you just kind of look like someone I know” the man continued.   
  
Kairi was frozen. There was no way. She looked over Sora’s shoulder up at the man before them.   
  
“Lea?” She asked.   
  
“I thought you had it memorized Namine. You’re suppos-” and he stopped. His voice going from slight annoyance to utter shock. Kairi and Lea stared at one another for several seconds. Riku and Sora didn’t know what to say or do.   
  
Sora was really confused, this guy had mistook him for someone named, Rox? And now Kairi for someone named Namine? The silence was maddening. Just as he was about to say something, Kairi took her hand off the small of Sora’s back and rushed past him, leaping up at Axel and wrapping him up in a hug.   
  
“Uh, Kai? Care to introduce us?” Riku asked. He could feel his heart rate elevated. He didn’t distrust Kairi, this wasn’t jealousy, but it was a bit too strange for him to process her knowing some red headed guy she never mentioned before. He could feel his anxiety elevating but it was subdued by Michael mouse crawling up his arm and chittering into his ear.   
  
The man, Lea? almost fell over, knocking into a table, a thick layer of dust whipping in the air in reaction having all four people cough a little. Lea? embraced Kairi back after a moment and then she dropped down off him. Looking back at her boyfriends, it had become clear that she had been crying. 

“I-I-I never thought I’d see you again.” she said, half looking at Lea? And half looking at her boyfriends.   
  
The man patted her shoulder and turned to look at Riku and Sora. He still had tears rolling down his face, but he seemed to have mostly gotten control over them.   
  
“Hi, my name’s Lea. Or at least it was. It’s Axel now, get it memorized!” And he punctuated that with pointing his index finger at his own temple. Sora and Riku stared in confusion.   
  
“Right. Anyways, so, Kairi and I, we’re brother and sister.”  
  
“What?!” both Sora and Riku echoed in unison.   
  
Kairi had composed herself enough to talk again. “When I moved to the Islands with my Mom, Lea stayed behind with dad, who said he was going to move away. I didn’t talk about him because, I never thought I’d see him again.”  
  
Kairi said with a half an exasperated sigh.   
  
“Yeah, that’s part of why I took on a new name. To separate myself from that asshole”  
“This is so exciting!” Sora said, and he pulled both Axel and Kairi into a hug. It took Riku a few seconds more, but he trotted over to join them.   
  
“So, what are you doing in this shop?” Kairi asked.   
  
  
  
“Oh, I guess you wouldn’t know. I’m a **witch**.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to post this ON Halloween, and I did for the west coast, just barely? Anyways! I'll be attempting to continue writing this over the next month as a NanoWriMo type challenge, and then once the month of November is over, I'll get to posting them. I'll *try* not to neglect my other fic during this time, but this AU will be my main focus because it's so lovely. The "Scooby Doo Fusion" elements will be light, but please look forward to much greater frights in the coming weeks!
> 
> Also, yes. He was a Moogle.


	2. Those who come in the night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kairi reunited with her older brother, the four discuss motivation and the origin of names.

Kairi stared intently at Axel across the table from her. It was utterly unbelievable. She just could not comprehend how it was that her brother was actually right in front of her. She was positively exploding with energy. Tapping her fingers on the table the four were sitting at she couldn’t help but watch each and every one of Axel’s movements. Honestly, she wasn’t convinced that if she let herself blink he wouldn’t somehow disappear.   
  
“Careful there cherrybomb, you’re going to blow up if you vibrate anymore” Axel said with a chuckle. He was leaned back in his seat, keeping balance by hooking his foot into a cross beam on the table they sat at. The trio plus Axel had agreed to get lunch - Axel’s treat - and Destiny Inc. could hardly say no to the opportunity for free lunch when it was offered from a stranger. Axel had told them they met at the only place he purchased ingredients for his spells and that he actually lived in the next city over, Twilight Town. He didn’t think a magic shop was the best place to catch up.  
  
They quickly went to their respective vehicles and Riku followed behind Axel’s beat up red and black Gran Torino for a couple blocks. Axel’s driving wasn’t the safest and Kairi was swearing up a storm as she watched him make sharp sudden turns and disappear out of view as the much more cautious Riku followed behind. Eventually they came to a café named Balamb Garden with a sign saying “Try our hotdogs”, and another sign hastily attached to it that read in big bold letters SOLD OUT. A man with a blonde hair, spiked at the front and a face tattoo walked out seemingly cursing his luck as he hung his head in defeat mumbling, “some day I’ll try those hot dogs.” The group of four met outside the door and quickly found themselves a seat on the patio underneath a big umbrella.   
  
Kairi blushed, pushing some hair out from in front of her face. “I still can’t believe it’s you, you know, like, really you.” she finally said in quick sharp breath.

“Well it is. I’m not going to burn away, get it memorized”  
  
“I can’t believe you still say that” Kairi chuckled back.

“I still don’t get why they never re-named it” Sora mused.

Axel smirked pounding the table in reply. “You know I have the same question, and I live there!” 

“I can’t believe you’re going on about this again Sora!”  
  
“Inquiring minds need to know Riku! Why isn’t Twilight Town renamed Twilight City!?”  
  
Kairi tented her fingers on the table and leaned forward. “I still think it’d cost too much money in administrative costs, and all the maps they’d need to reprint. Plus getting older people to actually call it that? Remember when the Destiny Island Slammers were renamed to the Besaid Aurochs?”  
  
“No?” Sora shot back quizzically. 

“Exactly!” Kairi retorted pointing dramatically across the table towards Sora. “Nobody calls them that. It’s printed on the signs and stuff, but nobody on the Islands actually needs to know when a slammers game is. You just have to listen to hear the team yelling about it daily leading up to a game. The Blitzball team’s name is the name we know in our heart as Islanders. So so too would Twilight Town’s name be its name in the hearts of the locals. To rename something is to change who or what it is at its core!”

Axel arched an eyebrow in response. “Been thinking about the meaning behind my name change Kai?”  
  
“Yeah, I guess”  
  
“Well, that’s definitely part of it for sure. But it’s also protection.” 

“Protection from what?” Riku asked, tilting his head in contemplation.  
  
Before Axel could answer, their waiter arrived. A teenager with unruly brown hair and light blue eyes. A thin scar ran from above his left eye, across the bridge of his nose and to a position slightly below his right eye. He wore a standard black button up shirt with the topmost button undone. Three belts were roughly holding up his pants in some byzantine enchantment. He wore a ring with the face of a Lion roaring. On his name tag was the name Leon.  
  
“Welcome to Balamb Garden. How can I take your order today?”  
  
“Six house specials, Squall” Axel replied, patting the teen on the back.  
  
“The name is Leon, and that’s Yuffie’s Line” he mumbled before he gave Axel a look that clearly said, but there’s only four of you, that quickly contorted into what could only be described as a “whatever” expression and then said, without a smile “Right away sir. What would everyone like for a drink?”  
  
“Oh Chocolate milk please!” Sora requested excitedly half leaping out of his seat.  
  
“You always get that!” Kairi accused with a half smile.  
  
“Don’t fix what ain’t broken” Sora retorted with his trademark goofy grin.  
  
Kairi chuckled. “I’ll have a virgin Mary please.”  
  
“Kaaiiairi you always get really fancy drinks”  
  
“Nothing ventured, nothing gained love. Come on Riku dear, don’t forget to order something” Kairi replied, gently patting Riku’s shoulder.  
  
“I’ll have a soda please” Riku said quietly making an apologetic shrug to the waiter, the waiter seemingly gave Riku a knowing look and noted down all three answers.  
  
Leon turned to look at Axel and Axel pondered for a moment. “I’ll have a water with lemon my good sir!” He proclaimed with a surprising level of authority. 

“Right” the teen said mindlessly scribbling as he unceremoniously took his leave of the quartet. 

  
“So”  
  
“You were”  
  
“Saying?”  
  
  
Sora, Kairi and Riku said in succession all leaning in closer to Axel, curious about what the end of his statement was going to be before their server had arrived.  
  
“Oh right. So, you know how I was saying I was a witch right?” Axel replied picking at his ear with his left pinky finger. 

Kairi scrunched her face up in disgust, “I see you haven’t stopped that either” she paired with sticking her tongue out at him. He mocked as if he was going to rub the finger down her tongue but stopped short of her face. “But I’m not sure how being a Witch is relevant” Kairi continued, maintaining composure. 

“Well you see, when you work in my line of work, there’s a lot of rather powerful forces at play. Demons and the like”.  
  
Sora’s ears perked up at this and he sat a bit more at attention, not fully aware why this was of such interest to him.  
  
“And well you see. Demons are not unlike fairies from children’s bedtime stories. Guys like Rumplestiltskin. Creatures who are enamored by the power of one’s true name. If a demon finds out your name, they gain control over you and could devour your soul in a second. You’d give it up. There’d be no question asking at all. ”  
  
A shiver ran over Sora, Riku, and Kairi’s spines as they sat listening to Axel. Each found themselves nervously looking at the other two, most likely fearing the worst.  
  
“So, you need a pseudonym. A shield against that deep magic. What’s important is they can’t know your name. The one you see as your name in your heart. Not whatever's written on some random piece of legal document. What you hear and think without questioning, that's me! So while yes, I’m still Lea. Nothing ain’t ever going to change that. Still the lovable goof that wants nothing more than to lay back with some Sea Salt ice cream on a warm summer day and soak in the rays of the Sun, I go by Axel. That keeps me safe, no matter who I introduce myself to, I’m Axel and they can’t take any control over me. Get it memorized.”

Riku was the first to respond, Sora and Kairi were stuck their voice lost in their throat.  
  
“It must be really tough, keeping that divide. Not letting Axel become your true name.”  
  
“Don’t you know it! But It’s not too bad. I’ve got a second set of insurance. Maybe you’ll meet him soon.”  
  
“You do?” Kairi asked, raising an eyebrow in suspicion. This was simply met with a playful grin from Axel.  
  
The conversation seemed to have run out of bandwidth for serious banter however and Kairi couldn’t find the energy to actually pursue it past Axel’s initial deflection. As a result, Axel turned the tables on them.  
  
“So, what are three kids like you doing so far from home. You said Ghost hunting? Do your parents know?”

“Uhh well you seee” Kairi began laughing nervously and tapping her fingers together a little frantically sweat pooling on her forehead.  
  
Sora began tapping his left hand on the arm of his chair as he averted Axel’s gaze by looking over his shoulder.  
  
Kairi caught Riku’s eyes with a very clear _ help please _ screamed at him from her eyes. Riku sighed and began to answer.  
  
“No, they don’t know. We left in the middle of the night. Growing up on the islands, we all felt trapped. We just couldn’t stand the sleepy pace of Island culture. The place is still very important to us, but we needed to move on to wider horizons with more mysteries to uncover and discover their secrets. To see the places people don’t want to see, and find that which creeps in the shadows. Just to truly know what’s out there. Oh, and to find Sora’s friend.”  
  
Sora blushed at that last line. “I don’t even know if those memories are real Riku”  
  
“And we’ll never know if we don’t try” Kairi countered gently patting her boyfriend’s shoulder and smiling at him.  
  
Crestfallen Sora quickly bounced back smiling.  
  
“What’s this about finding a friend?”  
  
“I think that’s Sora’s story to tell” Riku said with a sigh, going back to idly playing with his knife, poking it between the tongs on his fork.

“Uh well. I uh… When I was little. Like… reeeallllyyy little. This boy would show up in my room sometimes and we’d just talk. I like, don’t even remember what about. Honestly. For a long time I forgot all about him. But then I saw him one day when I was driving somewhere on the mainland for a Blitzball game. He was just, riding in a car driving in the opposite direction and all those memories came rushing back. So, I want to find him. Uh, Riku thinks he’s a demon.”  
  
“Oh really, and what makes him think that?”  
  
“Well, you see. . . “ Riku began trailing off and looking into the distance. 

Axel adjusted himself in his seat, giving Riku all the time he needed to tell the story. 

_  
It was about three years ago. We had just started high school - Well I’d been there for a year, but it was Sora and Kairi’s freshman year. Sora and I were having a sleep-over and Kairi was chatting with us via webcam since our parents didn’t approve of our slumber parties anymore. I think was looking out Sora’s window while Sora and Kairi were having a back and forth about how to solve an algebra equation from their math class - which I don’t know why Sora ever thought he would be the authority on anything math related.   
  
  
_ “Hey! I can do the math when it comes to cooking! I’ve never messed up substituting ingredients when we’re out of this or that” Sora interjected taking everyone’s attention.  
  
Riku laughed. “Yes, you do have that one area of savant greatness. I’ll give you that”  
  
“Let Riku tell the story Sora!”  
  
“Oh yeah, Sorry Riku! I’ll try and be quiet” Sora said and he began to fiddle with the zipper on one of his pants pockets.  
  
Riku smiled as he continued his narration.  
  
  
_ So anyway. I ended up drifting off to sleep. And I heard this voice. It was beckoning to me. And suddenly, Sora and Kairi were drowning. And I had both of their hands in mine and I was pulling and pulling and pulling and no matter how hard I pulled them I couldn’t get them to take their heads out of the water. I watch… well it was most certainly a nightmare. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ I awoke with a fright and Kairi was actually there in Sora’s room. His laptop was closed. Both of them had me cradled in their lap. I remember wrapping my arms around them and hugging them close. I don’t know how the three of us fit on the edge of Sora’s bed like that but we did. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “You had another bad dream” Kairi said, finally breaking the silence. My head was in her lap and she was gently patting my hair. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “You always talked about them like they were no big deal, but this was my first time seeing one Riku. I was so worried. You started thrashing around really violently. It sent my bookshelf flying off of the wall. And I had to hold your head to make sure you didn’t bump into anything. Kairi rushed over as soon as she saw it begin. I. I thought you were dying. I didn’t know what was going. . . on I was so scared” Sora choked out, holding tightly to my hands. I remember looking at his knuckles and seeing them turn white from how tightly he was holding them. He was even crying a little bit. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “How long has this been going on for?” Kari asked tenderly. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Ever since I fell asleep in the hidden cave on the play Island” I replied. Which at the time honestly surprised me. I thought I had just taken to having near nightly nightmares and they weren’t ever going to stop. I always made sure that Sora fell asleep first so he wouldn’t hear them. We didn’t share a bed so it was easy to hide myself thrashing when I was on a futon on the other side of his room. _

_ “That’s been nearly a whole year Riku. How have you been handling this on your own” Kairi scolded me. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Well I just, I didn’t want to be a bother” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “You’re never a bother Riku. I love you” Sora said through tears. His eyes were welling up like storm clouds about to explode on a late spring day. _

_ “I- I love you too” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “I can’t believe I’m in love with two huge saps like you” Kairi sighed. “But seriously Riku. We need to do something. Get you to a sleep doctor. Try my grandmother’s home remedies. Anything.” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “My mom made me go to a sleep doctor, it didn’t help any. Eventually they gave up and just blamed it on hormones. Which was a whole fight. About how I was wasting their money.” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “I hate her.” Kairi stated flatly. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “I know she means well, but it’s hard not to.” Sora reassured. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Anyways. This time… oh guys, you’ll think this is nuts” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Try us” They rebutted in unison. _

_ I couldn’t help but smile. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Well. I hear this voice whenever I fall asleep. Calling to me. And the dreams. They’re always on the Play Island. Every single one. It’s… it’s like someone is forcing me to have them. I... I... I'm not wearing anything. And I can feel hands on my body. Tongues on my neck. And I have no way to break free”_

_ “Well, that’s a start. Let’s get researching!” Kairi said decisively quickly slipping out from under me ensuring I ended up with my head resting on a pillow. She almost leaped across the room furiously opening Sora’s computer and began to type in search after search. It wasn't that she didn't want to comfort me, firstly Sora was there, and secondly, she knew she could do more by solving this.__  
_ _  
_ _ “Get your mom’s books on Island history, and the two of you, start researching!” she demanded, and we leaped to our feet as if our bodies weren’t even under our control quickly flying out to the bookshelves in Sora’s living room. _

_ “Do you think we’ll actually find anything?” I asked. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Won’t know till we try” Sora replied. _

_ We went up to Sora’s room with a pile of books. When his mom stopped in to check in on us she wasn’t even mad that Kairi was over. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Well if you three are going to be doing all this studying, I’ll turn a blind eye just this once. But, get to bed soon! It’s a school night” she said with a chuckle as she went off to bed. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ We ended up researching until very early the next morning. The books piled up read page to page. Sora was the first to pass out. I didn’t realize at first, he was just sitting there with his cute face staring at the book eyes wide open. If I didn’t hear his ever so quiet snoring, I would have been convinced he was just stuck on a word. Quietly I put him to bed and picked up where he left off. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Hey Kai, I think I found something.” I finally said around five in the morning. My eyes were fighting against me to stay awake, as I thumbed at a page in the final book in Sora’s stack. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Huhh whatzat I’m awake” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Oh sorry, we can talk about it at-” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “No no I’m awake Riku. It’s okay” She said quickly as she leaped over to kneel beside me, resting her chin on my shoulder. I pointed at an entry. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “It says here that German immigrants to the Islands all left in droves because of a legend of something known as an alp living in one of the caves. And well, if we connect the dots, this is the best lead we got. What do we- Kai?” _

_ It took me a few seconds to realize that she just as quickly had run back to Sora’s computer. She minimized an internet browser window overloaded with tabs and zoomed in on an entry on a PDF. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “I’ve been just looking for anything about dream demons. But everything I found was about stories from Europe. Nothing around here whatsoever. Wake up Sora. He’ll want to hear this too, and I’m not sure how much longer I can stay awake, we’ll be skipping class by the way.” She spoke with such certainty and direction I just kind of listened without questioning it. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ As I roused Sora from his dreams she continued. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “I knew it couldn’t be a Succubus or an Incubus, they rely too much on physical proximity to their target. Literally touching them. Plus. They only come to you while you’re dreaming, not via your dreams. It didn’t add up. So I was really stretching trying to find something. Anything online. But I wasn’t looking for the right things. I assumed that the demon would have to be rooted in Island culture and I don’t know why. In hindsight that was incredibly foolish. If I can immigrate to the Islands, why couldn’t a demon have done the same?” _

_ Sora was barely cognizant but I got him to tell me I had four, no three, fingers, he corrected himself, he was really hung up on both the pinky and thumb not being a finger since they were just called the pinky and thumb. So I knew it was as awake as he was going to be. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Alright. To catch you up Sora, Riku found a footnote about German immigrants performing a grand exodus from the Islands due to something they called an Alp. Alps are actually a category of demons, so it doesn’t narrow it down much, but when I cross reference it with this entry from The Routledge Dictionary of Gods Goddesses Devils and Demons by Manfred Lurker, things get more interesting. Here’s what it has to say.” _ _  
_ _ And then she read out the entry. _ _  
_ _  
_ ** _Druden (Truden; Gothic trudan, Old _ _Norse trotha tread, push) Drude (pl._ _Druden) is a term, particularly widespread in south Germany and Austria, for _ _a female demon which harries you in _ _sleep (in this, similar to the → Alp) or _ _casts evil spells. The word means ‘ghost’ _ _in Middle High German, and it has _ _become synonymous with Hexe witch. _ _In folklore the pentagram (Drudenfusz in _ _German) is regarded as a protective _ _charm against evil spirits._ **

_ We stared at it feeling triumphant, but I remember my heart sinking. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “There’s one problem” I began. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “What’s that” Sora asked, he was half asleep, face burrowed in my shoulder. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “I only ever heard a man’s voice.” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Come on Riku. Ancient myth is as sexist as anything else. Of course they’d only blame anything at all that mystified or bewildered the mind on a woman.” Kairi retorted and that was the end of that. We had our lead. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ We ended up pretending to leave Sora’s house for school, but doubling back as soon as we saw his mother leave in her car. Kairi made sure both she and I got a change of clothes from our house first, but after that We crawled up to his bedroom and set an alarm for an hour before Sora’s mom got off work. We slept soundly all intertwined with one another in a pile of blankets on the floor. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ As the alarm blared we quickly got up and prepared for our hunt, each taking a quick shower. Well. Kairi and I did. Sora as usual took a 45 minute monster of a shower. He would like it if I highlight that his mess of a hair is really hard to get soap into evenly. So I will. _

_ After we were all ready, We packed some bags. It was a Friday night in the middle of Autumn. We agreed we would go to what we collectively called the Play Island. A place we would row out to on a rowboat and escape from the world. We had spent endless summer days sparring with toy swords, playing pirates, pretending to be explorers discovering new worlds, and exploring the complex interlocking cave systems on that island. _

_ We packed 3 sandwiches each, three packs of hotdogs. About 20 bottles of water. Clothes. A Tent. A couple packages of marshmallows and each of us had a sleeping bag stuffed in Sora’s closet. No change of clothes, it was just going to be us out there as far as we were concerned. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ The goal was twofold. Have a fun camping weekend, forget school. Forget family. Forget life on the Main Island and secondly, investigate the caves which Kairi had taken to saying had cast a hex on me. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ For the first day we didn’t find much of anything. Idly we just enjoyed our time, eating food. Laughing. Drinking water. Trying and failing to catch fish with makeshift spears made from palm trees knocked over in storms. Just typical Island kid stuff. _

_ Finally in the evening of the second day, Sora came rushing back to our camp. He had taken to exploring a new cave system we had never seen before, but now he was rushing back to Kairi and me cuddling on the sand. His face was white as snow and all the colour had been drained from him. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Sora, what’s going on?” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “I think I saw a woman dying” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “What!?” Kairi and I exclaimed quickly leaping to our feet and de-entwining from one another. _

_ Sora led us wordlessly as we each took one of his hands for support, and so we wouldn’t get lost. It wouldn’t be ‘till a bit later we figured out a system that allowed us to do this single file instead of side by side. We ducked low as we entered the new hole in the cliff face. The slosh of our shoes on the wet rock echoed too loudly as we had naught else but the sound of running water and each of our hearts beating too fast for auditory accompaniment. _

_ As we approached the innermost point of the cave we heard heavy breathing. The three of us slowly poked our heads over a rock and saw a tallish woman with blue hair leaning against a wall. Blood was splattered on the ground as if she had just been nursing a wound to the chest, but she was just leaning there, breathing heavily, not a trace of blood on her body or clothes. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ At this point the only reason we could see anything was due to a rare glowing mushroom that illuminated the entire cave system in a hazy green aura. It did make seeing at a distance tough, but all three of us could make out a long-sword leaning against the wall next to the woman. Its sharp edge shined brightly in the iridescent glow of the fungi. _

_ The portion of the cave system she was in the walls were higher and you could stand upright instead of crouched low and duck walking like we were. Her steps were simple and confident as she delved deeper into the cave. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “I uh” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “We all saw the blood, we can’t blame you for thinking that was what you saw Sora, it made sense,” I reassured him, placing a hand on his shoulder. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ Sora gave me a weak smile and we each climbed over the rock one after the other. Sora first. Then me. Kairi last. Well, it might be more appropriate to say I lifted Kairi over the rock. _

_ The cave system here was much taller than it was wide. The chamber the bloodless woman was bleeding was round and wide, but the tunnel we all knew we had to follow her down would not let us walk down it two wide, let alone three wide. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “I’ll lead the way” Sora declared. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Oh, what are you now? Our fearless leader?” I asked. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “What if I am?” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ Kairi chuckled. “Well then I’m oh so grateful. Please protect us fearless leader” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ The three of us all let out a laugh. It took the edge off the fear, made it so it couldn’t control us. _

_ Slowly we formed a new position. Sora at the front, Kairi in the middle, hand on the small of his back, and me behind her, hand on her shoulder. I took the rear guard since I was the largest and the oldest. _

_ I’m not saying it’s perfect or infallible, but it’s become our system whenever we investigate the unknown that goes bump in the night. _

_ The tunnel snaked and curved. Water was seeping in from some hidden reservoir in the very core of the cliff we had dived down into. The trickling was the only sound save for the disjointed breathing of the three of us. And if I’m being honest, all of that was further drowned out by the beating of my own heart. _

_ Finally, after what felt like hours, we rounded a corner and came face to face with the blue haired woman from earlier. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “How long have you three been following me”? Her voice was calm, cool, and collected. But It cut right on through any sense of bravery we might have had in that moment. As I gazed at the shine of the blade in her hand, I realized how very much so we were just a bunch of kids. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Uhhh” Sora stumbled over his words. “We saw you bleeding in that cave and you ended up going the same way we were” he managed to get out, though, even from behind Kairi, and only staring at the back of Sora’s head, I could tell his teeth were chattering as he looked on her with awe. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ She furrowed her brow as she stared us down. “Do you know where you are? Children should not be here.” she lectured as she let out a sigh, resting her her face in her palm for a moment. Shaking her head she looked to us once more and let out a demand. _

_ “Follow me out before one of you gets hurt. By lord if I lose my chance to slay this demon I’ll-” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Wait miss. Let us go with you! I… I have been plagued by nightmares. And I need them to stop.” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ The woman stared at me as I pleaded with her. It felt like an eon had passed before she spoke again. “Tell me your names.” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Sora” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Riku” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Kairi” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ We replied quickly, standing at attention, all our eyes somehow locking with hers at once. Her steely gaze unbreakable. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Fine. Against my better judgement, I, Aqua, will protect you. Stay close. And more importantly, stay quiet.” _

_ We nodded and followed after her through the snaking tunnels digging deeper and deeper into the small Play Island’s mountain. Before long, the depth was almost chilly, and there was no doubt we were all below sea level. In my head I could feel a clawing. A hunger. A desire. A _ ** _Lust._ **

_My heart and chest constricted and my breathing became harsher and shallower. It took all my focus not to become louder as I took up the rear of our little adventuring party. If I was feeling better, I might have thought how much it felt like being in a Dragon Quest or Final Fantasy game, walking single file like that._

_ ** Finally, it was there before us. The creature that had haunted my dreams for far too long.** _

_ A large creature with long strands of hair tied into a series of intricate braids. Two large white spiraling horns pointing up from his forehead and almost coming to a point a few inches above it like some decrepit valentine. Smooth skin, yet with a gaunt to it I couldn’t quite comprehend. Merely looking at the creature was enough to begin to lull me back into sleep. _

_ Aqua quickly placed her hand over my eyes. “Don’t look upon it unless you want to die” she hissed at us all. We froze. What were were thinking? That’s what we all thought in that moment. It was totally foolish. _

“Hold on a minute Riku! You said Aqua?” Lea asked as he slammed his water glass down on the table hard. The Whole lemon Leon had delivered it with popped out of the glass and went flying into a nearby bush, only acknowledged by this narration.

“Yeah, Axel, what about it?” Riku cocked an eyebrow, a little annoyed at the interruption to his story. 

“Oh it’s just. I know her. I wasn’t sure at first, but really it was kinda silly. Like, how many demon hunters with a name like Aqua are out there?”

The colour had completely left Sora, Riku, and Kairi’s face in response.  
  
“You three look like you saw a ghost.” Axel prodded as their food arrived. Leon Quickly delivered it, finding the perfect lull in the conversation to place out their plates of Hot Sandwiches and fries, along with accompanying drinks with nary a word. As he vacated the table Sora got his nerves back first.  
  
“Well, it’s… when did you last see her?”  
  
“Oh I’d say, last week”  
  
Kairi responded, having gained her voice back next. “That, that doesn’t make any sense Le-Axel” she protested, bunching her hands up in her lap as her head hung low.  
  
“What do you mean?” Axel asked, sweat pooling on his brow.  
  
“She’s dead.” Riku said, somber and definitively as he continued his story. 

_ It all happened quickly from there. First Sora stepped on a rock, and it broke loose and went tumbling from the tunnel we were in to the cave below, splashing hard into a pool of water. The creature’s eyes opened as the splash rang out and we froze still. Sniffing the air it roared, “Who dare wakes Ansem from his slumber.” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ I felt compelled and I went running, leaping forward and rolling into the cave standing in front of it. My body was moving on its own. I wanted to flee, to grab Sora and Kairi and run, but all I could do was walk towards this hulking demon. Looking at him up close he was handsome. Muscular. Long flowing hair, chiseled features, and the deepest orange eyes. There was a yearning I couldn’t explain as I walked forward and touched his chest. _

_ The creature grabbed my wrist grinning. “Yes, you’ve finally come to embrace eternal darkness with me my love. Good. Very good” he cooed. _ I wretched my head back as he leaned forward to slowly kiss my chin.  
  
_ “Riku No!” I remember hearing that before I blacked out. And when I woke up. It was to Aqua laying over me, back against my chest. Unconscious, blood pooled around us, both of us the beast, and its voice gone, gone for good. Her Sword, nowhere to be seen. _

“Well, she survived. She, well, it’s her story to tell. But it’ll take more than that to keep her down!” Axel promised without missing a beat and pounding his chest for good measure.  
  
“We, we didn’t see anything. She knocked both of us out. And then we were dragging Riku away, and getting him cleaned and changed into new clothes. We weren’t even brave enough to go and check on her. We… we just assumed.” Sora mused, his head hanging low.  
  
“I highly doubt she would begrudge you for that! I’m sure when she came to, she was just happy you were safe.”  
  
“Yeah, I guess” Kairi said, not fully convinced, but the conversation had turned heavy and no one really had the energy to talk anymore. As a result, the four ate in silence, each stuck into contemplation of the past, and what the future may have in store. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took me a loooott longer than I would have liked. I should have the next chapter out quicker. That said, I'm still beating old records with this kind of things. This chapter took a much different turn than I was expecting. It was supposed to be a lot of Roxas and Ventus, but I ended up going into some dark Ansemku pasts, and exploring why Sora, Riku, and Kairi are on this journey of self discovery. I also didn't expect Aqua to show up, but yet we're here.
> 
> And yes, this won't be the last time Ansem shows up.


	3. Why They Haven't Changed Their Name

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sora, Kairi, and Riku finally get a chance to truly relax. But a big surprise awaits them the next morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My good good friend wrote a companion piece to this AU. It would be best to read it before Chapter 4 as Sannae does an absolutely wonderful job of breaking down what's going on with Namine and Xion (who won't much be in this particular story sadly) - as well as explaining the mechanics of being a Witch. [Here's a link to their absolutely wonderful Fic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24284044/chapters/58532227). 
> 
> Alright, onto the main event!

After the suddenly quiet and dour lunch, the quartet agreed to head on over to Twilight Town. Boxing up the untouched extra lunches, Sora, Riku, and Kairi thanked Axel for his generosity. On top of this, he had offered the trio spare space in his apartment in Twilight Town. Twilight Town had also always been their true goal. Radiant Garden had always been just a stopping point on the way to the city of the mysterious mansion, the 7 wonders, and the unknown and unseen mountain. Destiny Inc. planned to uncover them all.  
  
Rounding the corner from the cafe, as Axel finalized giving Kairi the directions to his apartment, a familiar sound came blaring from the Destiny Mobile.  
  
****

**“** **Akiramenai de taisetsu na  
** **Sukoshi no iji to KIMI yo DAARIN  
** **Shigekiteki hora SUTEKI** **  
** **Mieru sekai ga kirameku wa  
** **Tesaguri no atashi ni mo”**

  
Perfume’s song, _[love the world](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75hg0XFVByw)_, Donald Duck’s favourite. Riku patted his pocket, the car key was gone.  
  
“How did your damn duck steal the keys again!?” Riku exclaimed as his stride switched to running full tilt towards the van, attempting to jimmy the door open.  
  
Sora took a moment more to react before running after Riku. “He needs his tunes! You know how he gets if he doesn’t have his tunes!”  
  
Kairi stood back sighing as she watched her boyfriends struggle to open the van. Leaning against Axel’s shoulder, she looked up at him with a half smirk.  
  
“They always like this?” Axel asked as he played with a zippo, flipping it open and close.  
  
“Yeah, but they got cute bums, so it evens out.”  
  
“Ew, I don’t want my little sister objectifying men in front of me”  
  
“Do you disagree?”  
  
“Shut up.”

Sora and Riku pawed effortlessly at the door for several moments, watching the white feathered head of the duck head bobbing inside to the music. In the back, they could just barely see Goofy burrowing his head under a pillow. Sora ran around to the back and held up the two containers of food in such a way he knew Goofy would see them. The Anatolian Shepherd perked his head up panting at the food trays. And then, without warning Goofy slammed against the backdoor of the van, sending it flying open. 

Sora was knocked back and Goofy leaped in the air, snatching his mouth around one of the Styrofoam food containers, landing and skidding into Sora. Dropping the container, he proceeded to catillate the container clean of all the Burger and fries within. Sora sighed as the other styrofoam container crashed ungraciously on his face, flipping open and pouring all over the ground.  
  
“Serves the damn mallard right,” Riku spat out as he hopped over Sora and into the van. A mixture of honking, Kpop, and grunting came from the van for what felt like an eon, but was more accurately counted as not more than a minute or two before, finally, Riku emerged, with Donald loudly honking as he ineffectively bit at his cage. Quickly Riku scooped up as much of the burger and fries as he could and flapped open the door, tossing the food on and around the bird before closing the door, narrowly avoiding the flapping of the duck’s bill for his fingers.  
  
Triumphantly Riku turned off the radio and gestured for Goofy to reoccupy the van. The dog did with little protest. Closing the half eaten styrofoam container and scooping it up, he leaped into the van once more.  
  
Finally, dejectedly Sora got up, wiping ketchup and mustard off his face in equal measure.  
  
“Poor dear,” Kairi teased in too sweet a tone of concern, quickly mopping Sora’s face up with a spare napkin and planting a quick kiss on his cheek before he could protest her. She was quick to dispose of it in a nearby trash can.  
  
“You have my number. Once you’re close, text me and I can meet you outside and show you where to park, alright?” Axel instructed as Riku climbed out of the van to join his partners, wrapping an arm around both of them. Sora pouted but leaned into the half hug nonetheless.  
  
“No worries! Drive safe. See you back in Twilight Town!” Riku affirmed with a smile.  
  
“Keep my sister safe, got it memorized?” Axel warned, lightheartedly as he tapped his temple.  
  
“Of course, oh great wizard.”  
  
“Witch! Wizards are works of fiction!”

“Are you sure?”

“Well speaking strictly, there is no difference between a Witch and Wizard, it’s a choice of nomenclature, but Witch is the historic term and the root is in women, who were burned at the stake. That’s why my magical focus is fire. Got to keep the peccability of my fore-bearers memorized… well I’m not sure if I really had a choice in that, but it feels appropriate for a guy, ya know?”   
  
“Who’d have guessed my big bro would grow up to be a Feminist,” Kairi mocked, lightly punching Axel’s arm, also refusing to leave the half hug given by Riku.  
  
Axel smiled. “You kids are good. See you soon,” he said. He seemed to glide into his car without taking a step and very quickly zoomed off, definitely going over the speed limit. Goofy gave a loud bark of farewell. 

Kairi broke down into tears again. Sniffling, she burrowed her face into Riku’s chest who was quick to bring her into a more proper hug, leaving just enough room for Sora to squeeze in and also wrap his arms around her. Riku holding her and Sora close, and Sora nestled into the crook of her body, their combined warmth radiating on her as she sniffled.  
  
Sora was the first to speak. “I know you never thought you’d see him again, but you did, and we’re going to see him again soon.”  
  
“I know it’s just, a lot, you know.” Kairi choked out between sobs.  
  
“It’s okay to be a lot. We’re here for you no matter how much it might be. We can carry it,” Riku assured, gently lifting both of them for the briefest of moments, just enough to give a metaphoric illustration of his point. Kairi giggled through the continued tears. The three shared a silence as Kairi continued weeping for a few minutes.  
  
Finally she gave a small squeak that indicated she no longer wanted to be hugged and when she lifted her face, moving her bangs out from in front of her eyes, she revealed red puffy eyes that were all done crying.   
  
“Sorry I delayed our take off. . .” she had begun to say, but Sora quickly cut her off.  
  
“This is our adventure. And we agreed we’d do it at the pace right for all three of us, not just the majority,” Sora reprimanded her softly, following his words up with a light kiss on her forehead.  
  
“Yeah, so if you gotta cry, that’s part of it. But if you’re ready, let’s go,” Riku added in almost a whisper.  
  
“Yeah, I’m ready. Vroom vroom, let’s turn on Donald’s beats and rock this highway.”  
  
“I’m lucky neither of you have your license if Axel’s disregard for road laws is any indication,” Riku sighed, kissing Kairi quickly on the cheek and then Sora before quickly slipping into the van and into the driver’s seat.  
  
“What did I do!?” Sora complained, taking Kairi’s hand and helping her up the back of the van, closing the door behind them.

* * *

A few hours, and a few dozen Kpop songs too many for Riku’s liking later, they found themselves turning off the turnpike into Twilight town and instantly all six souls in the van understood why you couldn’t call this place a city despite the population.

It probably didn’t hurt their impression of the place that they were arriving in the epithetical Twilight the town was named for. Each street they passed was best described as cozy. Houses and street lights dotted the road in an uneven smattering. Only one or two major roads to speak of while residential, commercial, and even industrial sectors simply smashed into one another with little rhyme or reason. People lived here first, worked second. 

Sora and Kairi kept their eyes peeled on the scenery outside the windows so they could watch as people, houses, and various buildings of unexpected and unusual sizes zipped on by. Riku followed the GPS through the cacophony of seemingly endless streets. The only thing that gave away the citytude of Twilight Town was its sheer size. Sprawling endlessly.  
  
The miles upon miles of farmland further surrounding three quarters of the city helped keep its rustic charm however. On the outskirts you could still smell the mixture of manure, cow farts, and wet grass. 

“How much longer does Moogle Maps say Riiikuu, I’m getting car cramps,” Sora groaned as he pressed his face harder against the glass.  
  
Riku intoned a happy sigh before replying, “about five minutes, depending on traffic.” 

Kairi let out a triumphant cheer, collapsing into a pile of pillows and mattresses.

“I can’t believe it, we’re going to sleep in a **_real bed_** tonight,” she cheered as she cuddled her favourite pillow to her chest, quickly deciding to pull Sora down on top of her who let out a “woah” in reply to the tug as he fell into a half nuzzle from Kairi.  
  
“Can you two calm down in front of the children,” Riku chided and Kairi would swear that though he didn’t look back at them, Mickey crawled up onto his shoulders and wagged a digit on his left paw at the two of them before escaping back into Riku’s shirt pocket. 

Finally it was time, Kairi texted Axel and he met them outside the house he rented with his four roommates.

* * *

_  
  
We’re like basically here. So come help your sis rangle these beasts. _

_ I’m not touchin that fuck. _ _  
_ _ Duck. _

_ I meant my boyfriends, but I mean, the pets too. You have some yard space, no? _

_ Bad idea. _

_ Come oooonnn. _

_ I can find you space for the duck and dog tomorrow, but not tonight, okay, Kai? _

_ Fiiiinnneee. _

* * *

  
“The kids will have to spend the night in the van, but tomorrow, they can roam free,” Kairi exclaimed excitedly, pulling Goofy into a half hug as the very good boy gave her a healthy helping of slobbery doggo kisses in return.  
  
“I’m huuunnggrryy,” Sora complained as he bounced a ball against the side of the van.  
  
“We’ll get food soon, sunshine, so shut up till I park,” Riku chided in a slightly irritated tone which made Sora whip the ball at the back of the chair. To Riku’s credit, this was the fifth time Sora complained of hunger in the past half hour.  
  
“Sora I’m driving!” Riku chided and perhaps to Riku’s surprise more than anyone else’s, Donald began a furried pecking of Sora with his bill and wings, as if to chastise the brown haired boy.  
  
Finally after a flurry of tense words and endless honks from Donald, the van was parked haphazardly between two cars in a driveway barely large enough for one vehicle, let alone the massive Destiny Island Machine, or Axel’s car and the as of yet unidentified third. Tire marks on both the side patch of the lawn and front lawn made it clear that the occupants didn’t care about the effect of their diagonal parking job and that letting cars get in and out without moving other cars was overall the house’s priority.  
  
The house was equally lopsided, but clearly large. The front door awaited them already open. The house’s facade was a dusty wood stained an artificial brown. Inside you could see a mess of a living room filled with big chairs and couches bunched together and overloaded with blankets and pillows. Homey. That was the only word for it, like a home, not just simply another house. A mishmash of this and that. Of different souls making a house into a home. It felt warm despite the various deep scratches visible on every wall you could see.

“So remember what I said in my Texts?”  
  
“Yes, you’re going to make our babies suffer while we sleep in the lap of luxury,” Kairi replied staring daggers.  
  
“One of my roommates reminded me, we have _ two _ spare bedrooms. Six bedrooms, but two of us share. So we can lend you three one, and another one for the animals, but they ** _have_ ** to stay behind locked doors, no matter what. Got it memorized?”  
  
“Memorized,” Kairi said, eyeing her brother with suspicion. Unsure of how to properly take his grave tone, she decided it was best to let sleeping dogs lie. If only she knew the veracity of that specific choice of metaphor. 

Sora emerged, duck in arms, tumbling from the back of the van.

“Please direct me” he pleaded as the honking duck struggled against his caretaker.

Axel sighed and did a follow me gesture. Both Kairi and Riku resisted reminding Sora about the cage they had just for this purpose. Sora followed Axel and Goofy slunk after him. Passing a messy kitchen full of dirty dishes and half finished meals, Sora made a mental note to lend a hand. Axel opened a door to a mostly empty room, save for a handful of pillows and a single nightstand. Goofy leaped and curled up in a corner of pillows immediately, tugging one over top his head.  
  
Donald was deposited into the room and very quickly the door was closed and locked. Surprisingly, the honks instantly stopped.  
  
Axel gave a long yawn as he directed Riku and Kairi to drag their clothes into a room with an over large California king bed.  
  
“Why is the spare bed so large?” Riku pondered.  
  
“You’d be surprised what people give up as thank yous. Not that I accepted any of it. But like, if it’s on my yard, I’m not going to leave it out to get rained on,” he replied tiredly as he attempted and failed to open a pull tab on a bottle of juice. Meekly he struggled before to unleash his beverage. Frustrated at his failure, Riku snagged the bottle from him and undid it before handing it back.  
  
“Thanks, little bro,” Axel said as he tousled Riku’s silver locks. Riku blushed instantly as Axel hopped onto one of the countless sofas in the living room, turning on one of those high school dramas that’s just nine seasons of will-they-won’t-they that honestly no one ever knows why people get so invested in them. 

“Big brooooo,” Kairi intoned as she leaned over the couch, half hugging Axel. “We’re huuunngrryyy. And I get really handsy when I’m hungry. You must feed us else lay witness to what I will do to torture my boys to feed me.”  
  
Axel chuckled as he took a sip of juice before finally replying, tapping Kairi’s hand in an almost mock sympathy at the same time. “Not getting my help there. Trust me. With my roommates. I’ve seen much worse. Kitchen’s yours.”  
  
Sora had gone silent, which was weird. Giving up buttering Axel up, she turned with a slight huff to see Sora meticulously washing dishes and Riku leaning on a wall watching him. She slowly floated over to wrap her arms round Riku, resting her cheek on his chest as she shimmied under his arm.  
  
“We’re lucky to have him, aren’t we?”  
  
“Yeah.”  
  
“And he’s lucky to have us.”  
  
“... Yeah.”  
  
“And we’re lucky to have you too.”  
  
“... Thanks.”  
  
Effortlessly, in a mere half hour, Sora had every dish clean, the salvageable leftovers back in the fridge, and parts of the counters and table scrubbed down. He may have had this done sooner, but it took him a bit to realize some marks on the counter were scratches not dirt. He gave a smile as he turned to Riku and Kairi, who quickly pounced on him, pulling him into a group hug.  
  
“Well, if you’re going to do that, I guess I can whip something up for you,” Axel announces, having gotten up and wandered over to the nebulous divide between the kitchen and living room. The house was insufferably open concept. But it seemed to work for its residents. 

Quickly a stir fry was whipped up and served over some leftover rice. The three gobbled down, not only seconds, but thirds and fourths too. Riku was a bit hesitant, but Axel insisted, understanding what it means to eat a home cooked meal for the first time after so long. This too was the work of a witch, feeding and guiding the lost and weary. 

“Let me clean up in here, I can’t let Sora show me up. Why don’t you three go break in the bed. Just, not too loudly,” Axel offered over his shoulder. Riku’s face found a new shade of pink. Kairi stuck out her tongue as she dragged her boys away.  
  
“If it’s insufferable, turn up the TV,” she offered. As they were dragged by the upper arm by their girlfriend, Sora and Riku shared a look. The worst case scenario. _ Two of them. _

* * *

  
Click. The sound of the door locking.  
  
Next the muffled thud of Kairi tossing both her boys onto the soft heaven that was the mammoth of a bed’s mattress was heard. Her boys sunk deep into the bed, and neither wanted to get up. Sora managed to fight the urge to sink into oblivion though and quickly planted a kiss on Riku and Kairi cooed approvingly. Her shirt was off fast, as she clambered into the bed on the other side of Riku. “No fair, starting without me,” she complained, only to get both boys to kiss her cheeks as Sora climbed over Riku to get to the other side of Kairi.

Soft giggles escaped them as the three fell into one another’s embrace. The three traded kisses as Sora and Riku each ran a hand up her chest to her bosom. Sinking their fingers into her through the satin of her bra they traced kisses down Kairi’s neck who let out the softest of moans of pleasure. 

Kairi lifted her arms up, pulling Riku into an embrace as she kissed him deeply and flipped him onto his back, straddling him as she ran her hands up his shirt to disrobe him. Sora followed, pressing his chest into Kairi’s back, lifting stray hairs from her neck to sink so he could sink his lips around her neck, suckling. Riku leaned upward, pulling Kairi into a deep kiss. The weight of both his lovers pressed into him felt good as he pulled not just Kairi, but Sora too into embrace. Wiggling Sora’s shirt off in turn forcing Sora’s lips to free themselves from Kairi who let out a whimper of meek protest for the time Sora’s lips left her body, leading her to gently sink her teeth into Riku’s shoulder playfully in protest. Riku responded with a laboured breath as Sora began rubbing himself firmly against Riku and Kairi with gyrating hips, which earned him groans of lust and want from each of them.

Sora quickly unclasped Kairi’s bra, who let out a mock gasp of protest, but leaned backwards and pulled Sora down into another kiss as Riku began kissing and sucking on her nipples. Kairi ran her hand through Riku’s long hair, tracing it from his scalp to the small of his back. She groaned out in pleasure as she lost herself to her boys.

As they both broke free from their respective kissing for a breath of air, Kairi and Riku exchanged a mischievous look. 

Quickly in a tangle of limbs and bodies they tumbled on the bed. the bed creaking in response as they sprawled out. They ended up landing on top of Sora in the end. Riku behind Kairi, massaging her breasts as she gyrated her hips, stimulating both her boys.  
  
They continued late into the night.

* * *

  
  
In the morning, slowly Kairi awoke, finding herself sandwiched half naked between Sora and Riku, in the approximate middle of the bed. A slight groan of pleasure escaped her lips as she slowly detangled herself from her boyfriends. She had next retrieved an overlong shirt of Riku’s in their bags to throw on and slowly made her way to the bathroom. The shuffling of feet rushing down the hallway rang out as Kairi slowly opened the door and headed to the bathroom. 

While Kairi disappeared into the bathroom, the door to their shared bedroom was left ajar. While letting out a heavy sigh, Sora fluttered his eyes. They locked with a pair of eyes almost an identical blue to his own. Sora felt his heart skip a beat. It was the boy. He knew instantly.  
  
“You’re here!” he yelled as he leaped from the bed, pulling his boxers up in the process.  
  
A startled Riku rolled over, and in a normal bed, probably would have fallen out as his boyfriend woke him with the loud cry, but on a California King he only found more bed.

He lifted his head, strands of hair blocking most of his view, but he could just barely make out the shape of Sora hastily pulling on pants as he bolted out the door. In the distance, he could hear the flushing of a toilet as Kairi called out “who’s here?!” And then after a beat, Axel replied.  
  
“You all this loud every morning?” was all that came from Axel, albeit in the most done-with-everything tone possible, but Riku heard what sounded like someone falling to the ground. So groaning in disappointment as he looked at the clock in the nightstand, 8AM, he begrudgingly got out of bed. 

  
Through his mop of messy hair, he stumbled out of the room, somehow managing to pull on one of Kairi’s skirts as a form of decency. “Sadly, he can be,” Riku retorted as he saw Sora sitting on his butt, looking up to a bewildered Axel. Behind Riku, Kairi stood with a toothbrush in her mouth as she looked at her two disheveled boys.  
  
“Whagt’s goging awng guygs?” she asked not bothering to remove the brush, continuing instead to work on her oral hygiene.  
  
"I saw him! My bedroom demon, he’s here!” Sora cried out triumphantly.  
  
A blonde haired boy, shirtless with those same piercing blue eyes, looked around the corner from behind Axel. He had an incredibly irritated expression. “I’ve never seen you before today in my life.” 

“What but you look just like him!”  
  
“Well, again, I’ve never seen you before. The only dude I’m interested in is this guy,” he explained as he walked over and slapped Axel firmly on the butt. A black tail curled around one leg.  
  
Kairi’s toothbrush fell to the ground. 

“Oh, this is Roxas. My boyfriend. He’s an Incubus,” Axel introduced.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote the first half of this throughout February, but I wasn't in a very good head space. My Roommate ended up moving out in May. As you all know, the world basically ended in March, but I work from home, so that didn't really change work obligations for me. It was a struggle to get this chapter done. But. I'm in a much better place physically and mentally despite this global pandemic, so, with any hope, the next chapter will come much more quickly. 
> 
> It probably won't come up in the fic, but I like to think the majority of Axel's apartment has been furnished due to unaccepted gifts in thanks for his work as a witch. For further digging into how being a witch works here, again, please go read Sannae's EXCELLENT FIC [Witch Tale](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24284044/chapters/58532227).
> 
> This is the second time I've written a "threesome" and it's still very much so an experience of "how do bodies work", "what are all these limbs doing here?!" for me. I might on my NSFW account make a more Explicit version of this scene as a bonus when the fic is all done. It's exciting though, PLOT is finally happening!


End file.
